Sharks bit at least two swimmers on the beaches of Fire Island and another swimmer in the Hamptons on Tuesday, authorities said, bringing the tally of possible bites at the Long Island summer destinations to five in just two days. Via The New York Daily News:
On Fire Island, a shark bit the right hand of a 49-year-old man as he paddled off Fire Island Pines, and another shark punctured the thigh of an adult woman as she swam in Cherry Grove, according to the Suffolk County Police Department.
In Southampton, a 47-year-old man swimming in chest-deep waters at Quogue Village Beach was gashed in his right knee by a shark, the Quogue Police Department said.
The July 4 holiday, which began with a swarm of sharks delaying the opening of Fire Island’s Robert Moses State Park, ended early in multiple Fire Island beach towns, including Ocean Beach and Seaview, where swimmers were ordered out before 5 p.m. despite a lack of shark sightings there.
Fifty-seven shark bites were reported worldwide last year, with New York logging eight in a historic spike. Experts say the increase is a product of cleaner water and large schools of baitfish that bring the sharks close to shore.
But it’s still scary!
